why is it that network math is useful in networking?

addressing. Without addressing there wouldn't be networks or the Internet. Addressing requires math.

You mean, like calculating subnets? It is useful for ... calculating subnets. Huge networks will not auto-config, or do it non-optimally.

There are only so many IPs in the private IP space to go around, so they get re-used on different subnets. You need to know how big they need to be, and what the subnet mask should therefore be.

Of course, you could cheat and use a subnet calculator.

Or, you may need to change a decimal IP address to dotted-decimal.

Those are two I can think of off the top of my head. Unless you mean learning hex or binary math, which are general purpose in computing.

Hi,

Network math provide basic terminology of graph theory for understanding the internet.
Network math is normally related to addressing and it is most important in networking.